I’m a little late on the uptake, but I’ve discovered the most delicious California sparkler. It’s so good, so versatile, and so well-priced ($15.99 at Trader Joe’s), it’s toppled my previous house bubbly, Gloria Ferrer’s Brut, right off my top shelf in fridge.

Why? Because Schramsberg’s new brut sparkling wine, a nonvintage blend called Mirabelle, has the biggest, most vivid fruit flavors I have tasted over many a Christmas Past. For me, the fruit was unmistakeably tropical, so much so that I took a sip and blurted out: “Pineapple! Mango! Coconut … like a piña colada mated with a Champagne!”

Consistent with Schramsberg’s style, though, the Mirabelle also has some Frenchified affects, like a distinctly dry, ever so slightly tart finish — plus a great yeasty aroma and a tiny bit of cream mid-palate.

Schramsberg is one of California’s first sparkling wine producers; Tricky Dick made it famous when he brought it to Beijing as a gift to the Chinese, a move perhaps more revolutionary than Nixon’s going to China in the first place, since the strictly standard diplomatic ice breaker at the time was French Champagne. Since Chinese laborers hand-dug Schramsberg’s cellars in the nineteenth century — now there’s a enological full circle! — the winery has been aiming for a bubbly the power of a California wine, balanced with the finesse of a vintage French Champagne.

Fait accompli!